Loss of income

Although the daily expenses are low due to the closure of schools in Uganda, New Hope also has a lot of ongoing costs, as well as that they need to be prepared when the schools reopen. Most of the income comes from the sale of crafts by Talking Hands. This year, due to the Coronavirus, both the summer markets and the Christmas market could not take place. Because of this, Talking Hands has not been able to sell crafts for a long time. Financially Talking Hands is having a very difficult time. That is why we would like to ask for extra support, for example by making a one-time donation or a monthly continuous contribution.

Do you have ideas for fundraising activities? Please contact us via Facebook or e-mail. You can also donate money to our bank account with IBAN NL 74 RABO 0301 2992 50 on the name of "Stichting Talking Hands". Many thanks in advance!

Learning materials for students at home

Since most students have not been able to attend school since March, lessons are given on television and radio. Unfortunately this is not accessible for everyone, and definitely not for our deaf students. Because the students which Talking Hands supports are at home since March, learning material has been brought to them, so that they can still study independently at home. Meanwhile, the New Hope for the Deaf coordinator stays in contact with the parents and he visits the students at home, to make sure they are in a safe environment.

Workshop for new crafts designs

In October, New Hope for the Deaf organized a workshop crafts-making for Josephine and Britah, the two deaf women who have been making crafts for New Hope for years. Most of these crafts are sold by Talking Hands in Europe. During this workshop they worked on new designs and improving the existing crafts. New crafts include: handbags, masks and notebooks. Josephine and Britah are paid fairly and the rest of the income from the sale of crafts goes entirely to the projects of New Hope. For example, school fees are paid for more than 30 deaf children and youngsters.

New board members: Xanthe & David

Xanthe
In May 2020 I became part of the Talking Hands team as Fundraising and Volunteer Coordinator. This role is currently somewhat different from previous years due to the limited possibilities as a result of the new COVID-19 measures. Previously, much of the fundraising was done through markets, but now suddenly we found ourselves without events taking place. Searching for new creative ways to sell crafts, organizing fundraising activities and arranging the transportation of crafts from Uganda to Europe has been quite a challenge, but so far I enjoyed helping! I have experience in fundraising and am very familiar with these crafts as I spent a large part of my youth in Kenya. I have to admit that although I really enjoy sorting and selling the crafts, it makes me feel nostalgic from time to time.

Land purchase

At the beginning of November the team of New Hope for the Deaf started looking again for a suitable piece of land on which the new school could be built. The team visited many different pieces of land, which (partially) meet the requirements with regard to size, price, land title, access to water and road accessibility. After evaluating all plots of land, a number of possible plots of land have been selected. Soon a decision will be made around the land that Hope Hope wants to buy. With the support of a lawyer the land purchase process will be started. Hopefully the purchase of land will run smoothly and there will be no problems like last year.

What you can do

Inspired? Would you also like to contribute to Talking Hands and do you have some time to spare? We are always looking for extra help!

For example, you can organize fundraising activities, like sales of second hand articles or Ugandan crafts in your neighborhood. Or you could ask for a donation to Talking Hands as a birthday or anniversary present!

Covid-19 in Uganda

In general, there are few COVID-19 cases in Uganda, but there is also relatively little testing. The real number of people that are or have been infected with the Coronavirus will therefore probably be a lot higher than is currently known. Uganda has the advantage that it has a young population, half of the population is under 15 years of age, yet the Corona virus is especially risky for older people. Uganda had strict measures in place to keep the number of COVID-19 infections low. In the meantime, many measures have been relaxed; stores have been reopened, public transport is running again (at half capacity) and the airport has been reopened. But some measures, such as the curfew, are still in place.

For many people, the situation remains difficult. Many Ugandans have lost their jobs and income, product prices have risen, access to health care has deteriorated and many people live in poverty. Circumstances are good for our deaf students, as they mainly come from families that are subsistence farmers. Though, the schools remain closed for the time being. Only final year classes are allowed to return to school to prepare for their final exams. This means that our deaf students in their last year of elementary school (7th grade) are going to school again. The final exams are expected to take place in March/April 2021. In January there will be elections in Uganda, after that it is expected that schools will open again and that also students from other grades will be allowed back to school.

Announcement of the new website & webshop

We are in the process of setting up a webshop as an alternative for and addition to the markets, which currently cannot take place due to Corona. We are also creating a beautiful new website that is adapted to the changes around the projects of New Hope for the Deaf and Talking Hands. The company 'Your Future Academy' supports Talking Hands in this and works completely free of charge to renew our website and set up a webshop. We would like to thank 'Your Future Academy' for their commitment and contribution! We will keep you informed via social media about the developments of the website and webshop so that you will soon be able to order our beautiful crafts!

Flying in crafts from Uganda

We are looking for someone who will soon fly from Uganda to Europe and could bring some crafts in his or her luggage. We find it no problem to pay for an extra suitcase. Sending crafts from Uganda as a package is very expensive and also unreliable, therefore it is a better option for us if someone can bring crafts by plane. Of course, we are happy to offer you a number of new designs from the webshop for free in exchange.

David
Hello, I am David Smalbrugge and I joined the board of Talking Hands in October. Together with Marie I will take care of the acquisition for the foundation. I really like to get started and to contribute to Talking Hands. In 2018 I went to Uganda myself to volunteer in a hospital. There I saw how difficult it can be to build a life for yourself, especially when you are faced with less opportunities. With my work at the foundation I hope to be able to help Ugandan people with a disadvantage to get better chances.

Planning new school buildings

In cooperation with a local engineer in Uganda, we started to draw up a plan for new school buildings. Several stakeholders will be involved in the planning process so that we can be sure that all important aspects will be taken into account. When the planning of the buildings has become more concrete, the fundraising phase will start. If you have any tips, connections or ideas for us, please let us know!